Personal information | |||
---|---|---|---|
Full name | William Lazenby Gates[1] | ||
Date of birth | 8 May 1944 | ||
Place of birth | Ferryhill, England | ||
Date of death | 21 October 2023 | (aged 79)||
Position(s) | Central defender | ||
Youth career | |||
Middlesbrough | |||
Senior career* | |||
Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
1961–1974 | Middlesbrough | 283 | (12) |
1974–1975 | Spennymoor United | ||
Total | 283+ | (12+) | |
*Club domestic league appearances and goals |
William Lazenby Gates (8 May 1944 – 21 October 2023) was an English professional footballer who played as a central defender.
Born in Ferryhill, Gates played for Middlesbrough.[1] He later played for Spennymoor United.[2] He retired aged 30 after suffering from migraines, and later qualified as an accountant before opening a series of sports shops.[3] He inspired a charity campaign related to footballers with dementia after heading footballs, for which his wife, Dr Judith Gates, launched the "Head for Change" and "Head Safe Football" charities.[3][4][5] A documentary about Gates called The Billion Pound Game was released shortly after his death.[3][4]